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Archives for June 2010

carpenter ants in basement

Posted on June 24, 2010 Written by admin Leave a Comment

About a month ago I noticed a line of ants marching into my home through a basement window area.  We managed to locate a nest outside and took care of it, but there were ants crawling around my house by then- usually at night, but they would come out during the day sometimes too.  Anyway, we sprayed inside and out, and saw many dead ants in our home a few days later. However, I still see several ants each day.  Does that mean they are still nesting in our home, or are they a remnant, or are they coming in from outside?  Yuck, how do I get rid of the rest of them?

If you read through our CARPENTER ANT CONTROL ARTICLE, you’ll learn this species of ant will make many nests which are all “linked” via a complex web of scent trails. Finding one nest and destroying it will never solve the problem; the related nests which are very much a part of colony will simply use the pre existing scent trails to continue foraging. In most cases you’ll continue seeing ants as if you never killed any nest once they start using the old scent trails and repopulate the area.

To get control and kill off all the nests, you’ll need to use some of the professional grade products we have listed in our article. In situations like this, a combination of spray for the outside, spray for the inside and bait for the inside will usually do the job. Lets start on the inside.

Anywhere you’ve seen activity inside the home you place some CARPENTER ANT GEL out. In most cases this product will be readily consumed and shared by the other ants still alive. In a few days the gel will make it’s way into different nests and when it kicks into gear (which only happens after it’s been consumed and digested), the net impact of them feeding on it can be devastating since it will be too late for them to realize what has happened and change anything they’re doing.

To insure you get all the ants foraging inside the home, you should also spray all the cracks and crevices where you don’t apply the gel with some PHANTOM AEROSOL. This odorless and slow action residual will work much the same way as the gel. It’s impossible for them to detect and by the time it starts to work, the ants will have infected their nests and it will be too late. This is a key part of the process as it will insure any ants still living that are away from the gel infected nests will be controlled as they forage around looking to establish new nests.

Lastly, spraying the outside with some TERMIDOR will do the same thing as the Phantom on the inside. Be sure to treat the perimeter of the home so that any ants trying to get in will no doubt be affected. And as you’ll learn in our article, since this ant will forage several hundred feet, it will commonly come from other property so the outside treatment will be paramount if you wish to stop these long reaching invaders.

In summary, it’s important to understand carpenter ants don’t rely on just one nest when they build a colony. Instead they make several nests, maybe 4-8, and these all work hand in hand to both support and nourish one another. This is exactly the reason why a direct treatment approach will many times fail; the surviving nests will just re establish themselves and the problem will persist. But treating the inside and the outside thoroughly with slow working products that take 4-7 days to fully work has proven most effective on this species of ant. This “blanket” approach insures you get product into all the satellite nests at the same time so that when the active ingredients kick in and begin to their job, it’s too late for the carpenter ants to do anything about it. When done properly, the net result will be all the nests shutting down and the problem will be gone.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Carpenter Ant Article:  https://www.carpenterants.com/carpenter-ant-control

Carpenter Ant Gel:  http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page560.html

Phantom Aerosol:  http://www.bugspray.com/item/phantom_aerosol.html

Termidor:  http://www.bugspray.com/item/termidor_sc.html

Filed Under: how to get rid of Tagged With: basement window, carpenter ant control, carpenter ants, crevices, dead ants

ants in trees

Posted on June 18, 2010 Written by admin Leave a Comment

We have hundreds of ants in our trees that are leaving like a saw dust material all over along the tree and on the ground.  Am able to see huge holes higher on the tree where we are seeing the ant trails go.  What type of ants are they and what can we do to get arid of them.  Looks like they are killing our 30 plus yr old trees.  Limbs are starting to fall with fear that the main trunk may go soon.  What to do? HELP

There are many kinds of ants which will readily infest unprotected trees. Most will forage on trees feeding on smaller insects like aphids, whiteflies and mealybugs. But some are wood destroying ants like the Carpenter and Acrobat species. These ants will usually target older trees or trees that are diseased, deformed, damaged or vulnerable for one reason or another. If left to nest as they wish, the constant drilling and chewing will no doubt bring the end of the trees life much earlier than normal.

Treating the tree with a liquid spray is usually the most direct way to take care of the problem. One of the best products for this treatment is the BIFEN CONCENTRATE. Odorless, easy to use and because it demonstrates no phytotoxicity to plants, it should be broadcast onto the trunk of the tree where you see activity. Most any sprayer will do the job but if you don’t have one that can reach high enough, the TROMBONE SPRAYER is perfect for most applications since it can reach so high. Treat every two weeks till you no longer see activity. Retreat during the summer to insure none return. In general, you should get 1-2 months of protection when treating for maintenance (no activity is present). But when ants are active, apply some more frequently till the nests are destroyed.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Bifen Concentrate:  http://www.bugspray.com/item/bifen_it.html

Trombone Sprayer:  http://www.gotosprayer.com/sprayers/pump-sprayers/trombone-pump

Filed Under: how to treat Tagged With: ant trails, bifen, destroying ants, dust material, kinds of ants, type of ants

carpenter ants in bedroom

Posted on June 11, 2010 Written by admin Leave a Comment

I have carpenter ants in my bedroom.  How can I get rid of them?

I suggest you first review our CARPENTER ANT CONTROL ARTICLE which details all you need to know about this destructive pest. As you’ll learn in the article, activity in the home means there is a nest close by. You’ll also learn they tend to have several nests all working within a “network”. These satellite nests can be located on the home, in the yard or even on someone else’s home. Treatment will vary depending on whether you know where any nests are located and in general, it’s always best to directly nests when possible. This will insure a quick kill. Alternatively, using the bait gel and longer acting sprays will work but these products take some time to work.

I also suggest you review our video’s. The one about “how to locate the nest” is especially helpful if you don’t have a clue where it might be located. Again, if you are fortunate enough to see where you think they might be nesting, a direct treatment with the DRIONE will yield fast results. But if you aren’t able to find any nests but do see them active in several locations, you can opt to use the slower working CARPENTER ANT GEL combined with the PHANTOM AEROSOL (for inside the home) and the TERMIDOR (for outside on the home). This trio of products will no doubt get any type of ant which chooses to remain active on treated surfaces and is definitely a viable option.

Here are direct links for the information and products mentioned above:

Carpenter Ant Control Article:  https://www.carpenterants.com/carpenter-ant-control

Drione:  http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page91.html

Carpenter Ant Gel:  http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page560.html

Phantom Aerosol:  http://www.bugspray.com/item/phantom_aerosol.html

Termidor:  http://www.bugspray.com/item/termidor_sc.html

Filed Under: how to get rid of Tagged With: carpenter ant control, carpenter ants, carpenterants, destructive pest, drione, termidor

carpenter ants under hot tub

Posted on June 11, 2010 Written by admin 2 Comments

How do you get these ants out of the underside of a hot tub.  It’s up on blocks right now, and I know they are eating through the foam insulation because there are little chips of it in piles under it.

No doubt carpenter ants (and several other species like acrobat ants, fireants and some others) love foam and moisture. Put the two together and then move the piece outside and it’s only a matter of time before you have some type of an insect problem. Having dealt with similar problems over the years, I have learned that the direct approach of dusting with the DRIONE DUST featured in our CARPENTER ANT CONTROL ARTICLE is by far the best approach. It will knock them out on the spot and the problem will be solved. In most cases I’ve been able to use one of the HAND DUSTERS we have to get the dust where it was needed. Sometimes I’ve been able to crawl in through a maintenance hatch to access the main nest site; other times I’ve had to reach blindly to make the application. The Drione is like smoke so it will float around and get good coverage even if you aren’t sure you hit the spot dead on.

Alternatively, if you’re not able to get close enough to where you think they are nesting, you could opt to spray the area down with the PT-PHANTOM AEROSOL. This product works well on most any ant as it’s slow acting and doesn’t “spook” them like other sprays. The way it works is that the ants will walk over treated surfaces and as they do, they’ll be picking up trace amounts which will be brought back to their nest and “shared” with the other ants. The net result will be the whole nest will be killed when the active finally kicks in and starts to work. This is usually in 3-5 days after you treat.

One other thing. In cases like this I like to take a mirror and place it on the ground just under the tub so I can look at the reflection of the bottom side. I like to do this before I start plodding around and spooking them. Many times watching them this way will reveal the exact location where you’ll need to direct your treatment so it’s worth the effort.

Here are direct links to the products and information mentioned above:

Drione Dust:  http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page91.html

Carpenter Ant Article:  https://www.carpenterants.com/carpenter-ant-control

Hand Dusters:  http://www.gotosprayer.com/dusters/hand-dusters

PT-Phantom:  http://www.bugspray.com/item/phantom_aerosol.html

Filed Under: how to treat Tagged With: acrobat ants, carpenter ant control, carpenter ants, drione dust, foam insulation, insect problem

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